Purchasing Quality Seafood
Several key considerations can help consumers choose premium-quality seafood. Prioritizing purchases from established vendors with demonstrated safe handling records is essential – avoid informal roadside operations. When shopping, make seafood your final selection to minimize temperature exposure during transport. Always prevent cross-contamination by keeping raw seafood juices isolated from other groceries, particularly items consumed without cooking. Using separate plastic bags for each seafood package effectively prevents bacterial transfer that could spoil already-prepared foods.
Understanding labeling terminology aids informed decisions. "Fresh" typically indicates products that haven't undergone freezing, though "frozen" shouldn't carry negative associations. Properly frozen seafood can match or exceed fresh quality – base your choice on overall product condition. Products marked "fresh frozen" underwent freezing shortly after harvest, often within mere hours. "Previously frozen" labels indicate thawed products originally sold frozen.
Allergy Awareness
Before selecting seafood varieties, consumers must recognize any personal allergies to specific finfish, shellfish such as clams and oysters, or crustaceans including shrimp, lobster, and crab. Finfish and crustaceans rank among the eight primary allergens causing ninety percent of food allergic reactions. Since cooking and proper handling cannot eliminate allergenic proteins, individuals with sensitivities must completely avoid problematic species.
Recreational Fishing Considerations
Personal fishing for consumption represents a significant source of seafood in America – roughly one-fifth of consumed fish and shellfish comes from recreational or subsistence harvesting in oceans, marine waterways, estuaries, freshwater lakes, ponds, rivers, and streams. Individual fishers may catch fish from waters containing elevated contaminant levels despite commercial fishing bans. Before fishing, verify whether health advisories exist for your target water body or species, and follow all recommendations. Access advisories through local or state health departments, fisheries agencies, or the EPA Website. Plan adequate cooling by bringing sufficient ice and coolers to maintain cold temperatures until proper refrigeration. Use only potable water for rinsing or cleaning catches, and maintain cleanliness of all cutting surfaces, knives, and equipment.
Assessing Freshness Quality
After deciding which fish type to purchase, evaluate the available fresh seafood quality carefully. All fresh seafood requires storage near 32°F, maintained through refrigeration and ice displays. The following guidance helps assess quality for various retail seafood forms.
Whole Fish Assessment
Regardless of variety, whole fish exhibit specific freshness indicators. Eyes should appear bright, clear, full, and often protruding. As freshness declines, eyes become cloudy, pink, and sunken. Gills should display bright red or pink coloration. Reject fish with dull, gray, brown, or green gills. Fresh specimens should lack loose or sloughing slime.
Flesh should feel firm yet elastic, springing back when gently pressed. Over time, flesh softens and separates from bones. Fresh whole fish skin should appear shiny with tightly adhering scales. While characteristic colors and markings fade after leaving water, skin should maintain bright, lustrous appearance.
Fillet and Steak Evaluation
Fillets and steaks should present firm, elastic flesh with fresh-cut, moist appearance minus browning around edges. Fillets separate when stored too long. Flesh should appear nearly translucent. Minimal bruising or flesh reddening from blood retention indicates quality. Prepackaged steaks and fillets should contain minimal liquid – fish fillets deteriorate quickly when stored in liquid.
Shellfish Quality Indicators
Shellfish availability includes live, cooked, or fresh-shucked forms. Each type and species presents different quality markers. Live clams, oysters, or mussels should have moist-looking, tightly closed shells. If shells slightly gape, ask retailers to tap them – shells should close; reject cracked shells that don't close. Oyster bottom shells should be well-cupped, indicating plump, well-formed oysters. Soft-shell clam "necks" or "snouts" should move. Fresh-shucked clam, oyster, or mussel meats should appear plump and covered in their liquor. Liquor should be clear or slightly opalescent (slightly milky or light gray), free from shell fragments or grit, with no strong odor.
Scallops rarely sell live due to extreme perishability. Typically shucked at sea immediately after capture, though day boats occasionally bring whole scallops to market or local restaurants. Fresh scallop meat has firm texture and distinctly sweet aroma. Sour or iodine smells indicate spoilage. Smaller bay and calico scallops typically appear creamy white, though some normal light tan or pink coloration may occur. Larger sea scallops also generally appear creamy white, potentially showing some normal light orange or pink color.
Live crabs and lobsters should show leg movement, with lobster tails curling tightly underneath when picked up rather than hanging down. Lobsters and crabs appear less active when refrigerated but should display some movement. Cooked lobsters or crabs in shells should be bright red without disagreeable odors. Picked lobster meat appears snowy white with red tints, while crab meat appears white with red or brown tints depending on species or body section. Cooked, picked lobster or crab meat should have good color without disagreeable odors.
Raw shrimp meat should be firm with mild odor. Most variety shells are translucent with grayish green, pinkish tan, or light pink tints. Shells shouldn't have blackened edges or black spots – signs of quality loss. Cooked shrimp meat should be firm without disagreeable odor. Meat color should be white with red or pink tints. Tiger shrimp have bluish shells with black lines between shell segments (not black spots).
Whole squid should have clear, full eyes with untorn skin and very firm meat. Fresh squid skin is cream colored with reddish brown spots. As squid ages, skin turns pinkish and flesh yellows.
Date-Labeled Products
Purchase pasteurized crab meat and similar products only when "sell by" or "use by" dates haven't expired. While helpful, these dates remain reliable only if seafood maintained proper storage temperatures throughout handling.
Mail-Order Seafood
Gift seafood represents a growing specialty market, primarily for gourmet items. Fresh and frozen seafood reaches people distant from sources. Maine lobsters ship anywhere nationwide. Canned salmon, chopped clams, seafood seasonings, marinades, and some smoked products are shelf-stable without refrigeration. However, other fresh or frozen seafood must arrive as cold as refrigerated to remain safe. Before ordering such items, inquire about shipping methods and timing to maintain cold temperatures. Upon receiving packages containing live shellfish or fresh or frozen seafood, immediately verify shellfish are alive, fresh products are cold as if refrigerated, and frozen products are frozen. If not, contact the mail-order company for proper replacement or refund.
Frozen Seafood Selection
Commercially frozen fish undergoes quick freezing at peak freshness. Consumers now find extensive top-quality, wholesome seafood in freezer cases. When properly thawed, frozen fish compares favorably to never-frozen fish. Select packages from below freezer case load lines. Look for packages maintaining original shape with intact wrapping and minimal visible ice. Seafood should be solidly frozen without freezer burn signs like discoloration or surface drying, and have no objectionable odors. Same guidelines apply for frozen prepared seafood such as crab cakes, breaded shrimp, or fish sticks. Don't allow packages to defrost during transportation.
Value-Added Products
Value-added seafood includes battered and breaded items, smoked seafood, dried fish, precooked entrees, fresh minced clams, pre-seasoned fillets like farm-raised catfish, and others. These semi-prepared products are refrigerated or frozen to simplify home meal preparation. Remember safe handling guidelines, cleanliness, proper storage and cooking temperatures, and always read labels following manufacturer directions, especially as new products reach marketplaces. To safely use refrigerated, prepared seafood, ensure coldness when purchasing. Also check package "sell by" or "use by" dates. Read labels carefully following storage and cooking or heating instructions. Use these products within recommended timeframes. When freezing these products, do so promptly after purchase.